Mid Atlantic Mosquito Control Association 2013 Conference Notes The Role of Wildlife and Humans in VBDs - Jane

Huffman a) Ticks i) Live slow ii) Environmentally tolerant iii) Long lived iv) Different stages feed on different hosts v) Feed for long periods and consume large volumes of blood vi) Feed on a variety of species vii) Overwinter viii)Lay massive numbers of eggs b) One Health perspective - Lyme Disease i) Reservoirs (1) White-footed mouse (2) Some others may be involved (3) "Bed and Breakfast" Host - white-tail deer (4) Deer not good hosts or reservoirs but are the place where ticks meet and mate ii) Vectors (1) Ixodes scapularis (2) Other species may be involved iii) Pathogen ecology (1) Extended feeding time required for spirochete activation (2) Other agents in white footed mice (a) Borrelia burgdorferi (b) Anaplasma phagocytophilum (c) Babesia microti iv) Sentinels (1) Black bear (2) Coyotes and other canids (3) Raccoons v) Risk of transmission (1) Needs to feed for an extended time (18-24 hrs) to transmit the bacteria (2) Some areas are better than others (3) Can be found outside the high risk areas vi) Vector control (1) Guinea hens love ticks (2) Damminix tube - good for ticks on deer mice (3) 4-poster systems to kill ticks on deer (4) Mosquito Squad - commercial pest control (5) Protective clothing and repellents (6) Eliminate vector habitat (a) Forest fragmentation adding to TBD burden (b) Create tick safe zones

vii) Education (1) Trailhead signs (2) Target risky behaviors (3) Know the disease symptoms and treatment (a) There are different strains of Borrelia burgdorferi (b) These can have different symptoms and signs (c) Lyme-Aid tick testing kit (4) Treat your animals (a) Against ticks and fleas (b) Vaccinate c) Borrelia miyamotoi i) Found in turkeys in TN, PA, and NJ ii) Probably in other areas iii) First human case in 2012 d) What is needed i) Tick surveillance ii) Testing - if you look for it you will likely find it iii) Keep an eye out for Cytauxzoon felis (1) Disease in cats (2) Vectored by ticks (3) Reservoir - bobcats